Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Song of the South 62nd Anniversary — Your Questions Answered
Posted by: Amelia // Category: Brer Rabbit, Good Questions, Joel Chandler Harris, Song of the South, Uncle Remus // 5:38 pm
Out of the many things we do not have in this museum, Song of the South is the one we field the most questions about.
In honor of both Song of the South’s birthday (release date: November 12th, 1946) and my mom’s birthday (release date: undisclosed) here are some frequently asked questions and our typical answers.
Do you sell Song of the South?
Why no, no we do not. In fact, no one has been selling Song of the South since it’s never been released for home consumption in the United States.
Song of the South is really racist, right? Is that why it’s banned?
Well, first of all, it’s not banned. It’s just not distributed in the US. It was a different story over in Great Britain and Asia until 2001. And to answer your other question, well… how about you read this enlightened opinion and let me know what you think.
But Disney doesn’t have anything to do with the movie now, right?
Aside for their most popular amusement park attraction, Splash Mountain, nope!
Was Joel Chandler Harris pleased with what they did with his stories?
Tough to say, since JCH passed away in 1908, 38 years before the movie’s release.
Well, what about his family?
They sold a handful of stories to Disney in 1939 for $10,000. On the one hand, yay! $10,000! Renewed interest! On the other, there was probably some self-kicking later.
Do y’all have a relationship with Disney now?
See: self-kicking later. Not even a few royalties, guys? Please?
No, but really: you guys can sell it to me, right?
Not even a little. Try eBay! Or piece together a few YouTube clips–
Anything we missed? Use the comments!
Related–
- GPB’s radio show, Georgia Gazette. Tonight Lain will be on it, discussing Song of the South! It airs at 6 pm, but don’t fret–you can download it on iTunes, too.
- “In Search of Uncle Remus.” The AJC covered the 60th anniversary of Song of the South. We’re featured prominently.
CNN en Español at the Wren’s Nest — En Familia Video
Posted by: lain // Category: Atlanta, Brer Rabbit, Fame and Fortune, Joel Chandler Harris, Storytelling, Uncle Remus // 6:56 am
Have you ever wondered what the Wren’s Nest looks like in Spanish?
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8245944374249364941Me neither.
But, this particular episode of En Familia (as opposed to its usual tripe*) is pretty cool. It’s about storytelling around the (spanish-speaking) world. We talked about this in August. You remember.
Things to look for — Akbar plays a prominent role, and then Amelia, Jeri, and I have small cameos. If you stick around to the end and look closely, you can see that I forgot to wear socks that day.
Finally, recall that we were worried about if anyone in Spain or Latin America had heard of Brer Rabbit or Joel Chandler Harris.
Welp, turns out that CNN Producer Kevin’s intern–from Chile–was all like, “OMG I totally have that exact book at home!” And she speaks for 350 million people, so obviously our worries were assuaged.
* I’m kidding, CNN. Sheesh.
Comments: 2Disney’s 1956 Joel Chandler Harris Tribute
Posted by: lain // Category: Brer Rabbit, Historic Preservation, Joel Chandler Harris, Sing Songery, Song of the South, Storytelling, Tar Baby, Technological Advances, Uncle Remus // 4:53 pm
This tribute to Joel Chandler Harris aired on the television show “Disneyland” on January 18, 1956 to coincide with the theatrical re-release of Song of the South. Walt Disney himself hosted the program.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5306178916172912157The video concludes with the Song of the South version of “The Wonderful Tar-Baby Story” (37:45).
Items of note–
1. Young Joel Chandler Harris is played by David Stollery, who went on to design the Toyota Celica A40 series in 1978. Thank you, David.
2. Joseph Addison Turner is depicted as Colonel Sanders himself. In reality he was probably 35 or so when he hired Harris.
See what I mean?
3. My apologies if this video gets taken down. If I go to jail for posting this, please call my mom.
Comments: 9Rich’s Children’s Menu Featuring Brer Rabbit
Posted by: lain // Category: Atlanta, Brer Rabbit, Burritos and Other Fine Foods, Joel Chandler Harris, Marketing Tricks, Uncle Remus // 7:43 am
Southern historian Tim Hollis sent us this Rich’s Menu featuring Brer Rabbit and his critter friends–
Click here for the full menu.
Isn’t it weird that the tar baby recommends desserts, but included in those desserts is tar baby ice cream?
For those of you who never had the chance to go, Rich’s was an Atlanta-based department store, founded in 1867. It was like the Macy’s of the south until Macy’s acquired Rich’s in 2005.
Comments: 2CNN en Español Tapes En Familia at the Wren’s Nest
Posted by: lain // Category: Brer Rabbit, Celebrity Requests, Fame and Fortune, Joel Chandler Harris, Storytelling, Uncle Remus // 1:33 pm
Today CNN en Español is taping their program En Familia here at the Wren’s Nest.
I’m pretty sure the title of this specific program will be called “¡Este Museo Heule a Mierda!”, based on the fact that they kept on saying that over and over again. I believe it roughly translates to, “This Is a Great Museum!”
The show will feature stories about storytelling from around the world, but it’ll be based at the Wren’s Nest. Man, it sure does pay to be right down the street from CNN.
En Familia is hosted by Carolina Escobar, who was late but forgiven.
CNN en Español reaches every continent ending in ‘merica, which is good because most of our foreign visitors hail from Europe and Asia. We need to diversify our portfolio.
I’m not sure what kind of legacy Uncle Remus and Brer Rabbit have in Spanish speaking countries. We do have a copy of La Fiesta del Zorro from Argentina, but I think we’re bigger in Japan. They sent their film crew first, anyway.
Just in case nobody had heard of Brer Rabbit, the film crew suggested that my sister bring over my family’s Song of the South poster.
Apparently Disney goes a long way in terms of Latin American street-cred.
The crew, the producer, and Mrs. Escobar have all been terribly gracious and promise they’ll send along the final video when it’s finished. I’ll upload it if I can.
Comments: 1Tropic Thunder Starring Uncle Remus, I Mean Robert Downey Jr.
Posted by: lain // Category: Joel Chandler Harris, Mr. T., Robert Downey Jr., Tar Baby, Uncle Remus // 12:07 pm
On Friday Tropic Thunder, the action-satire directed by Ben Stiller, opened in theaters.
Robert Downey Jr. stars in the film and plays Kirk Lazarus, an absurd method actor who undergoes skin pigmentation treatment to better portray a black man on screen.
My “Uncle Remus” Google Alert has been blowing up ever since. From CNN, and echoed by a few others (1, 2):
“Downey’s blackface performance is an appalling mixture of Mr. T and Uncle Remus, but at the same time he endows the actor with enough straight critical intelligence to appreciate the severity of their situation.”
Downey’s character, Kirk Lazarus, creates a seemingly tough (like Mr. T) and sagacious (like Uncle Remus) onscreen persona. But since Lazarus is method acting (and rarely shooting the movie-within-the-movie), he’s ridiculed for failing to stop acting like a black war hero when the cameras aren’t rolling.
So that part of the comparison is fair. But it’s unfortunate that the CNN journalist ignores the intelligence of Uncle Remus. No offense, Mr. T.
I doubt it was a choice–Uncle Remus is so often connoted as shuffling and dimwitted, no matter what was originally written. It’s not unlike what’s happened to the connotation of “tar baby” recently.
When Joel Chandler Harris wrote the Uncle Remus stories in the late 19th Century, Remus was a significant departure from other black characters in popular fiction. Uncle Remus was a philosopher revered by the author, not a minstrel presented only for cheap laughs.
In 1986 Ralph Ellison wrote:
“Aesop and Uncle Remus had taught us that comedy is a disguised form of philosophical instruction; and especially when it allows us to glimpse the animal instincts lying beneath the surface of our civilized affectations.”
Reading about Uncle Remus in movie reviews, you’d have no idea what Ellison was talking about.
Film critics and historical characters aside, if you like extremely inappropriate jokes and meta-fictional hijinks (like the staff of the Wren’s Nest), Tropic Thunder is for you.
Comments: 2Remembering the J.K. Rowling of His Day
Posted by: lain // Category: Events, Joel Chandler Harris, Storytelling, Uncle Remus // 9:34 am
Today’s Atlanta Journal-Constitution features an article on Joel Chandler Harris and our Family Reunion.
I’m happy to report that the Family Reunion was a tremendous success, thanks to a lot of folks, but mostly to Volunteer #1 Annette Shakespeare.
We’ll post plenty of our own pictures later in the week when I’m not so sore and cranky. Check out the article and let us know what you think!
Comments: 91932 Coca-Cola Uncle Remus Cutout That Sparked Copyright Lawsuit
Posted by: lain // Category: Brer Rabbit, Failed Attempts at Looking Reputable, Marketing Tricks, Ridiculous Demands, Shameless Promotion, Uncle Remus // 9:33 am
Last week we discovered that Esther LaRose Harris, widow of Joel Chandler Harris, sued the Coca-Cola Company for copyright infringement in 1931.
Phil Mooney from Coca-Cola Conversations, a Coca-Cola history and archives blog, shed some light on the lawsuit and provided the advertisement in question.
(Download the full size .jpg.)
According to Phil,
In 1932, the Coca-Cola Company issued a children’s cutout based on the Uncle Remus stories. The Company had negotiated rights with the publisher, Appleton, to use the Arthur Frost illustrations on the advertising. Mrs. Harris sued for copyright infringement.
Ultimately, the courts ruled in favor of the Company. While Mrs. Harris had the rights to the stories, the illustrations belonged to the publisher.
Very cool. Thanks, Phil!
Comments: 1Coca-Cola Sued for Copyright Infringement of Uncle Remus Stories
Posted by: lain // Category: Good Questions, Historic Preservation, Historical Quagmires, Joel Chandler Harris, Marketing Tricks, Ridiculous Demands, Storytelling, Uncle Remus // 10:32 am
From the mailroom–
In 1931 the widow of Joel Chandler Harris sued Coca-Cola for infringing upon the Brer Rabbit “copyright.”
Click the pictures for a better view. Please pardon the cut-and-paste…the clippings came from someone’s scrapbook and weren’t easily scanned together.
Slow news day, maybe?
I wonder if Mrs. Harris was upset or short on cash. Probably both, I suppose.
As you might expect, back in the day the success of the Brer Rabbit stories led many companies to to capitalize on the names “Uncle Remus” or “Brer Rabbit” or “Briar Patch.”
Often, the spirit of the branding was, well, not terribly respectful:
Before someone sent me this news clipping, I hadn’t heard of the Coca-Cola lawsuit.
Does anyone out there have any Brer Rabbit - Uncle Remus - Coca-Cola memorabilia?
Comments: 4Wedding Guest Book: The Favorite Uncle Remus
Posted by: lain // Category: Flawless weddings, Historic Preservation, Joel Chandler Harris, Storytelling, Uncle Remus // 11:22 am
The couple that got married here at the Wren’s Nest on Saturday night used one of the books from the museum as their guest book.
Fitting, no?
I especially like that Brer Fox weighed in on things.
Comments: 2